Philip Augustus Tower

The Philip Augustus Tower, locally known as Tour Philippe Auguste, lies in the town of Charlieu in the Loire department in France.

A Benedictine abbey was established at this site in the valley of the Sornin River around 872 by Ratbertus, Bishop of Valence. The site was called 'Carus Locus' in Latin, which became 'Cher Lieu' in French, meaning 'the Dear Place,' while the abbey was dedicated to Saint Fortunatus. In 932, Pope John XI assigned the abbey to Cluny Abbey, and a settlement grew next to it. The abbey was reduced to a priory in the 11th century.

In 1180, Philip II of France, also known as 'Philip Augustus,' took the locality under his protection. In the following years, a new town wall was built, and the priory was fortified separately with walls, flanking towers, and a large round tower amidst the walls that connected the priory to the town. The large round tower probably served as a keep and was later named the Philip Augustus Tower.

Constructed from local yellow limestone like the other fortifications, the tower stands over 21 meters high, with an external diameter of nearly 11 meters and walls 2.25 meters thick. Internally, it originally contained 4 wooden floors, each about 4.7 meters tall.

The Saint Fortunatus Priory grew in importance and reached its peak in the 13th century, with about 30 monks. By the late 17th century, only six remained. During the French Revolution in 1792, a revolutionary mob broke into the priory and burned it down. The priory church was largely torn down in 1795 and sold for its building materials.

The Philip Augustus Tower escaped destruction when it was designated a historic monument in 1885, after the municipal council had voted to demolish it the year before.

Today, the Philip Augustus Tower can only be viewed from the outside, unfortunately. Only one of the flanking towers of the priory's fortifications remains, named the Tour des Moines (Monks' Tower), which also cannot be accessed. The priory itself is open to visitors for a fee.

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